Pluto Schmuto!

Ok, so the IAU decided not to call Pluto a planet. Big Deal! It is what it is, and it's still there!

Seriously, just because the astronomers decided to appropriate the formerly non-scientific word 'planet', doesn't mean everyone has to rush out and buy new solar system posters that stop at Neptune! Let the IAU redefine 'planet' if they want to. It shouldn't matter to you unless you're trying to get published in Nature or something.

I think I agree with downgrading Pluto. The director of the Hayden Planetarium said something like "if you put Pluto where the earth is, it would grow a tail, and that's no way for a planet to behave." I agree - that's more like a comet than a planet.

In fact, here's an idea! I suggest that we remove digit status from the number 9. Not only would gas stations be forced to remove all those annoying 0.9 cents from their prices, there wouldn't be any more debate about Pluto no longer being the "9th" planet - whatever that means.